Work In Progress Summer '25

It's been just over a month since I posted anything. I try to post at least once a month, however this last month has been difficult. Partly because things in the real world haven't gone well, and partly because it's been so blinking hot. These things have combined to sap my enthusiasm. Even so, I've not been completely idle.

ADLG: Northern League Round 2 (Manchester, 18 May 2025)

Introduction

In the midst of an unseasonal heatwave, I made the usual drive up the M6 to Manchester in the cool of the early morning. Shorts and t-shirts were the order of the day for many. At lunchtime I managed a rare photo of some wargamers enjoying the sunshine.

At the moment I'm only playing in competitions, so I have changed my approach to the Northern League. I've decided to be more adventurous, if not somewhat perverse, in my army choices.

15 mm Khitan Generals And Attendants (Ten Kingdoms)

Here're my latest command bases for my Mongol ADLG armies. They are digital designs from Ten Kingdoms, printed for me by Mick's Bits using the super tough TGM-7 resin.

15 mm Khitan Light Infantry (Ten Kingdoms)

Introduction

I have a large Mongol army. I've had it so long I've replaced almost all of it at least once. Nonetheless, I occasionally buy more, but there's method in my madness.

New Toy Time

This post is about testing my new light box.

Prompted by other wargamers on social media, I bought the newly available 10" Puluz model for about £12.00 from eBay with free postage.

My old light box was held upright by weak magnetic pads. It wan't very stable. This one is very solid and is easy to set up and pack away.

ADLG: Vapnartak (York, 01 Feb 2025)

Introduction
The trip began (too) early on Saturday morning at 06:00. I'd decided to drive across the M62 to my first event of 2025. The venue was excellent, but finding it was not as straightforward as I'd hoped. Then again I wasn't the only one; others nearly missed the start.

After a strong cup of tea, I managed to get the drive out of my head and prepared to play.

15 mm Cart Of Death (Peter Pig)

To coin a phrase from the 1970s: "And now for something completely different". This is from Peter Pig's War of the Roses range. It's Pack 22: "Dead cart with a pile of dead bodies, horse, and a dead collector".

28 mm Commanders (Essex Miniatures)

When I placed my last order with Essex I decided to buy a few extra figures to add some variety to the long slog of painting a 15 mm Hellenistic army.  I ended up with commanders for three of my Art de la Guerre (ADLG) collections: Hellenistic, Arab Empire, & Ilkhanid Mongol.

The figure is based on a magnetised 40 mm plywood base which is the same size as my 15 mm ADLG command bases. My plan is to use them as CinCs during competitions. Afterwards they will be retired and placed in my display cabinet.

Northern League - 2023 Review

It’s that time again: time to review the state of the Northern League (the wargames competition scene in the North of England).  In fact it's a little early this year as the organisers seem to be red hot this year.

I'm glad to say that this year I managed to participate in my increasingly standard two rounds.

Book Reviews - David O. Morgan

This is something of a first.  Instead of reviewing the books I want to focus on the author.  David Morgan died in 2019 but left behind a significant body of work.

I first came across his book on Medieval Persia by chance last year when I was looking for books on the Arab Conquests.  Purchased second hand, the first edition was both a bargain and a delight.  With a clear, concise and approachable style the book dealt with all the rulers of post Arab Conquest Persia with aplomb.

DBA 3.0 Army Design Tool

I haven't played De Bellis Antiquitatis (DBA) for decades, but I do own a copy of the latest version.  Who knows I may use it one day.

I built this a few months ago after I spotted a nearly full data set on the Fanaticus DBA forum.  This was just before I left the forum and was looking for a small data project to occupy some dead time.  

Northern League - 2022 Review

It’s that time again: time to review the state of the Northern League (the wargames competition scene in the North of England). I'm glad to say that this year I managed to participate in both the opening and final rounds.

15 mm Medieval Baggage Tents

One of the things I found during my recent “sort out” was a pair of very old resin tents.  They were hidden away in the toolbox containing my Italian Wars army.

They are old models and pre-date the wonderful Baueda range.  The sculpting is basic. The castings are a bit rough too.  Nonetheless, I fancied painting something different.

So I removed the old groundwork, sanded down the castings to get as smooth a finish as I could and set about turning a sow's ear into a silk purse (if that's possible).  Here are the results:

15 mm War of the Roses Commanders - Complete

This is a post showcasing the third, and final, infantry command base for my Tudor army at Bosworth.  The base represents Sir Rhys ap Thomas of Dinefawr, his standard-bearer and livery captains using Donnington New Era figures.

I already have a set of three mounted, and two foot commanders based for Art de la Guerre (ADLG) but I felt the need(?) for one more commander on foot.  Any excuse to re-use the flags I created.

15 mm Medieval Bretons (Donnington)

Another, if somewhat small, batch of units for my Wars of the Roses army.  This time some light infantry:

As with the recent batch of Welsh spear, I painted these because I finally decided to “trim” my War of the Roses army.  It's now very much smaller and lots of figures have gone to a new home thanks to eBay and some long-standing contacts.

15 mm Medieval Welsh Spear (Donnington)

These are my first figures specifically based for Art de la Guerre (ADLG).  Normally, I would base three figures on a 40 by 20 mm metal base and use two base to form an ADLG unit.

This time I put 6 on a 40 by 40 mm base because, post pandemic, all the metal bashing shops near me have closed, and I'm nearly out of 40 by 20 mm metal bases.

I painted these because I finally decided to “trim” my War of the Roses army.  It's now very much smaller and lots of figures have gone to a new home thanks to eBay and some long-standing contacts.

ADLG: Northern League (Leeds, 20 Mar 2022)

Sunday dawned bright and clear.  I was up very early, for me at least, and met with Gareth Jones & Thrasyvoulos Drakoulis for the trip across the Pennines.

By the time we arrived at the Leeds Wargaming Club's excellent new premises (lucky people) I was almost awake and ready for the first game.

The first round of the Northern League had a medieval theme and I was taking my newly finished Muscovite Russian army for their first competition.  The initial entrants are listed below but real life considerations meant that things were slightly different on the day:

Northern League - 2021 Review

It’s that time again. Unlike last year when the League was cancelled, it's time to review the state of the Northern League (the wargames competition scene in the North of England). I'm glad to say that this year I managed to participate in the final (open) round.

15 mm Russian Medieval Command (Essex, Mirliton & Roundway)

This post marks the completion of my late medieval (or Muscovite) Russian army.  The three commanders below are put together from some left over figures and a pack of musicians.

15 mm Russian Medieval Medium Cavalry (Essex)

The four units are intended as armoured lesser Boyars (Nobles) which are medium cavalry bow in Art de la Guerre (ADLG) hence the unarmoured horses.  Sadly many of the Essex miniatures don't have bow cases so I'll just have to use my imagination for those that don't:

In contrast to the heavy cavalry there's more variety in the shields and armour so the units are more interesting.